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Managing the Concealable Stigma of Criminal Justice System Involvement: A Longitudinal Examination of Anticipated Stigma, Social Withdrawal, and Post–Release Adjustment
Author(s) -
Moore Kelly E.,
Tangney June P.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.618
H-Index - 122
eISSN - 1540-4560
pISSN - 0022-4537
DOI - 10.1111/josi.12219
Subject(s) - stigma (botany) , psychology , recidivism , psychiatry , mental health , community integration , criminal justice , optimism , criminal record , clinical psychology , social stigma , social psychology , criminology , medicine , family medicine , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , physical therapy
People with concealable stigmatized identities, such as a criminal record, often anticipate stigma from others. Anticipated stigma is thought to cause withdrawal from situations in which there is the potential for discrimination, which then negatively impacts behavior and functioning. This may have implications for offenders reentering the community, possibly hindering community integration and encouraging maladaptive behavior postrelease. Drawing upon a sample of 197 male jail inmates, we examine a theoretical model in which anticipated stigma during incarceration predicts behavioral outcomes 1 year after release from jail (i.e., recidivism, substance use disorder symptoms, mental health symptoms, community adjustment) through social withdrawal. Anticipated stigma during incarceration predicted social withdrawal three months postrelease, which then predicted more mental health problems 1 year postrelease. Stigma resistance and optimism buffered the effect of anticipated stigma on social withdrawal. Race moderated multiple paths in the model, suggesting that the relations between anticipated stigma, social withdrawal, and adjustment are more pronounced for White offenders.